How has the shutdown affected your opinion of Minnesota?
Posted at 5:00 AM on July 12, 2011
by Eric Ringham
(67 Comments)
Filed under: Politics/Government
Listeners and experts are telling us that Minnesota's reputation is suffering as a result of the state government shutdown. Today's Question: How has the shutdown affected your opinion of Minnesota?
Comments (67)
This state shutdown and the partisan bickering in Washington have convinced me that the current two party system is irrevocably broken.
To choose a new Pope, they used to lock Cardinals in a room, remove the roof forcing them to deal with the heat and rain allowing them only bread and water untill a decision was made.
I think something similar should be done with our legislators and Governor. What do we do instead, keep paying them am make sure their services are provided for first before those of Minnesota citizens.
I still think MN is great. And we will be even better, just as soon as we kick Grover Norquist out of the legislature and ban him from ever entering our state again.
Yes it has affected my opinion of Minnesota.
Minnesota once was full of open minded people that knew how to be statesmen that work for the long term good of ALL the people and represent ALL the people even if they did not vote for them.
Now it seems in the majority in the MN legislature we only have politicians that care only for those that vote for them and gave them money. They vote as they personally think and want to force their political and religious views on everyone. They had time to put gay marriage on the ballet...gee aren't most political gay scandals on the Right side if the political fence? Anyone remember the MPLS airport bathroom... and Gee public money going to yet another new sports stadium for a yet another Billion dollar business that wants money for the people to pay for their business.... hey they had time for that.
The current majority (by 1% or less) is going to set Minnesota back to the stone age! Women will soon have no rights about their bodies,if these people continue.
I'm so sad.... from the land of Hubert Horatio Humphrey and Walter Mondale to this... this is getting to the point that we got to in the 1960's.
It was Israel Bissel that rode from Boston to rally the colonists "to arms, to arms" to fight back an intimidation (of the colonists) by a political party...
Today a better rally cry would be "to the phones, to the email, to the offices, to the people " and let these people know that what they are doing is not right. PLEASE LET THE RATIONAL PEOPLE OF MN CONTACT THESE FRINGE POLITICIANS AND STOP THIS SMALL MINDED VIEW.
MN must survive! Start now to get the vote out for the next election, to rid this wonderful State of small minded people.
Remember the 60's! Follow the money it took down Nixon and it will take down this radical right! Look at the facts that are now coming out about Michele Bachmann and her money! Even Tim Pawlenty is saying the lights are on but nobody is home about Michele Bachmann. Heck they can't even figure out history! The Boston Tea Party was not about tax hikes it was about taxation WITHOUT representation. Hey we got that now ...Well 51% has that now...the others don't.
Thank God we have Gov Dayton holding down the moral and rational view as he is acting as a statesman.
Remember talk (in today's world posts) are cheap! Action is needed.
How many of you remember the saying and T-shirts that stated " If you not part of the solution your part of the problem" Get out and talk politics everywhere you go! Do not let a suppressive dysfunctional group of people push their view of religion and life on you! Outside of the USA we call that the "Taliban" years back we called it "Nazi"
MN must rally and become the open minded state it once was and must become again to survive.
Cheers,
Steve
They are going to ruin my wedding! I have a wedding planned at Afton State Park in Sept and my view on MN is going way down as that date draws closer and NO ONE will answer my calls to let me know if i need to find another venue!!
While our elected officials are in a frozen state of non-compromising words, we Minnesotans will reach out to help our families, friends, neighbors and those in need during the shut down. Minnesotans have done this since 1858. How else would we have survived the harsh variations in temperatures and weather through four seasons helped influxes of immigrants through the years?
Let's call in Brooks and Shields to present to our legislators a session on civility, compromise and listening with respect to each other. Families flourish by engaging with each other in this manner; our legislative body needs to do the same!
The trouble is, CF, picking and choosing one's evidence is precisely what too many folks are doing, particularly on the ideological extremes. I agree, it's hard to get beyond one's preconceived notions, particularly when they're self-serving-- like rich folks rationalizing their hoarding of wealth by telling themselves that the poor just need to work harder, and that helping them only enables the bad habits that led to poverty in the first place (I actually used to believe that BS, btw).
And one preconceived notion in particular is doing more harm to our society than any other: the idea that wealth equals happiness-- that well-being can be accurately measured in dollars. That delusion at the root of most of the social and political dysfunction in Minnesota and all of America today.
I get the impression that Democrats need to negotiate with Rove and Norquist directly, rather than with the local anarchists.
@ Steve The Cynic
rather than seeking the truth wherever the evidence leads..
As long as one seeks the whole truth and not pick and choose the "evidence" to arrive at said "truth" to fit their own belief system and worldview. But that is rarely humanly possible because every body has pre-conceived notions, that is ideology.
As a passionate lover of everything Minnesotan, I'd say my opinion has turned to embarrassment! To think that the majority leaders of our legislature spent the whole session discussing gay marriage and voter I D makes me sick to my stomach! They are 100% responsible for this mess and for them to try to turn this around and try to blane Governor Dayton, is nothing short of criminal!
@MNResident,
I would say that applies to all ideological think tanks-- conservative, liberal, libertarian, whatever. Any "institute" that's set up to find reasons to support an ideology, rather than seeking the truth wherever the evidence leads, eventually becomes a lie factory. The right-wing think tanks are worse, only because they've been more successful lately in getting gullible voters to believe their bullshit.
I am greatly disappointed. Both parties are claiming to be holding out for a specific population but are doing a great disservice to all Minnesotans. I'm sick of all this political grand-standing. I say get rid of political parties and make people get elected BY THE PEOPLE and serve THE PEOPLE instead of the parties.
Signing a "no taxes" pledge is akin to saying, in advance, "I will not bother to do the work required to do the job I am running for." The tax pledge is idiotic as are the people who signed it and those who asked for the signatures. You pay your bills, first, and argue about new debt later.
I don't remember Republicans objecting to all of the pointless government construction in downtown St. Paul during Pawlenty's regime. Do they only care about keeping control of the purse when it benefits their cronies? Pawlenty built a city full of empty palaces for government employees. Overhead we will be paying for over the next decades, regardless of the value of the services. Where was all that financial conservatism then?
We need to dump the bicameral system and put some constitutional penalties on elected officials who don't do their jobs. Maybe this will tip the state into passing a strong referendum system? If representative government no longer works, it's time for direct democracy.
Finally, conclusive evidence that the phrase "conservative think tank" is an oxymoron. It is clear that Republicans at the local and national level have no solutions for any of the country and state's problems. They are simply spokespersons for various corporate and idle rich interests and they have no ability, interest, or stake in solving problems. I was independent, and still am, but no Republican candidate will be a viable option for my vote for the rest of my life. They have embarrassed Minnesota and have shown they are willing to trash the state and the country to hang on to their offices.
I'm greatly sadened by the inability of our public leaders to work together. Minnesota used to be a polite state that valued manners. Mom used to say "if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all." We used to have a great reputation, not any more. I guess I know how Alaskans feel now.
I have heard the idea floated that, during a gov. shutdown, elected officials should not be paid, but still required to work. I think this would be a good idea, if it could ever be passed by congress and governor. Maybe it would provide more incentive to get a deal made.
As an out of state visitor who has in the past always loved coming to Minnesota, this shut down was at first comical, but not anymore. Two nights ago my son and I were driving I 94 from argo when the worst weather I have ever driven in struck. We saw several overturned semi trucks and near zero visibility. How does this connect to the shutdown? It was at first frustrating, and then infuriating, that not one rest area was open. Countless travellers were endangered by having to pull off to the side of the road because the areas beneath the underpasses were already full, as were the off ramps, and the rest areas not only closed but barricaded. Coming from Ohio, I had always thought of the Land of Humphrey and Mondale as being the state of good government. Maybe the land of Bachmann is not just a fad but a sad new direction.
The shut down hasn't changed my opinion of the state because I never accepted the idea that Minnesota was so unique and special. Those who do believe that are practicing a form of provincialism. You find it wherever you go, so let's face, it everyone everywhere can't be special.
Mostly people everywhere are just bumping along from day to day. I guess declaring yourself to be unique and special makes some feel better.
I am a state employee. We now have high level and experienced employees at my agency seeking employment elsewhere where there is less political volatility. We will lose more and more valuable employees as time goes on.
I believe the people who are running this state have forgotten who put them in the positions they are in. The current condition of the state budget on deeply affecting the people whom voted these current leaders into their positions. The governor and the current leaders need to look at themselves as to what they are doing to the people of this state, and wonder who is going to vote for them in the next election. Not me
No lottery?
Who, in a time we have a revenue short fall, defines a revenue generator, which exceeds its cost to operate, to be non-essential? With a revenue short fall part of the problem, why not keep every revenue positive generator open? The Zoo in the summer is another example.
Sounds like an utter lack of common sense in time when we need good management decisions based on facts.
I love the shut down. I had no idea the State funded and subsidized so many groups. I wish the city, county, and Feds would also shut down for a month or so. Then we can get more self reliant on a plan B instead of living in a nanny state. The public school shuts down for three months yet get full pay with health care and pensions worth millions. Works for them.
I work with the developmentally disabled in Bemidji. We do the work that many cannot or refuse to do. It is low pay and a thankless job even on a good day but we do it because it is the right thing to do. Any one of us could have been born disabled due to no fault of our own. We were forced to close services to 20 adults receiving Semi Independent Living Skills last week and some of these people are without family or friends to help them out. We have 2 freshman Republicans "representing" us that either will not communicate or have the Tea Party philosophy that government should not help the disabled. I have lost one staff and 4 others had their hours cut to less than half time and may not be able to hang on. Our services are facing a disporportionate consequence during the shutdown, and will be further hurt when the cuts actually come. The only people who volunteered to help are my own staff- there are no Tea Party people offering to help these people. The shutdown is unforgiveable and we are just left waiting to see what our elected officials will do to us- meanwhile people are at risk...
I see Minnesota as more sharply divided, and less willing to hold productive conversations. It breaks my heart.
Part of my job involves interviewing and recruiting future colleagues from around the country, trying to convince them that life in MN will be better than wherever else they have a job offer, in spite of the ridiculously horrible weather. In the past, I was able to brag about the quality of life--the wonderful parks, the extraordinary libraries, the public schools that still worked, the excellent University, the arts that lift the Twin Cities high over any other midwestern location-- as well as the strong ethos of investment in the public good. My co-workers made fun of my Minnesota boosterism. Now, it seems to me that all of those services and collective assets have been seriously damaged. The quality of life for the many is being sacrificed for the profit of the few, and that ethos of community pride and generosity to the less fortunate has been replaced by rabid expressions of sneering contempt. I find that I can no longer in good conscience tell anyone that they will be better off if they move here, and I'm watching my colleagues leave for jobs that pay better in states where there are no snow emergencies. Worst of all, I'm giving serious thought to my daughter's future and whether it's worth relocating for her sake. A future of Minnesota Mean is extremely unattractive.
What’s wrong with our system? My parents and our neighbors were both basically at the same low income level. My parents taught my sister to save all she could so she would have money to attend college after high school. Our neighbors let their daughter (my sisters friend) waste all of her money on frivolous items and things on her want list. When graduation came, my sister had saved much while her friend had saved none. Which child do you think got a state grant to attend college? The poor behavior was rewarded, and my sister was told she could afford college with her own money. Once again the state picks up the tab for those making bad choices. Is something wrong here? Some say I was born without compassion, however I think it was learned. Compassion is usually expensive.
No, but it has confirmed my opinion of politicians. It's a really good illustration as to why I want to go live up north someplace, marked with No Trespassing signs with my dog and shotgun. Sigh...
I am dismayed with the image my state now has. "Minnesota Nice" has disappeared and been replaced with a Republican philosophy of "I've got mine, good luck getting yours."
And, as far as "kitchen table budgets" go, when I was a young teenager, back in the early 1960's, and the family budget wasn't going to allow for me to go to college, I went out and worked, to add to the family budget.
Families don't just cut out expenses at the kitchen table. They also look for new sources of income to help out, while they cut back where they can.
Some states don't even have a state income tax. So Minnesotans deserve better than this.Dayton and the representatives should not be allowed to hold our money hostage by closing down parks, highway construction, Work Force offices, etc.Dayton wouldn't even let the Republicans keep things open for a few days so that people could enjoy the 4th of July. That shows how disconnected he is from the average person's way of life. The state of Minnesota is losing a lot of tax revenue because of the shutdown.How can we put an end to this? Maybe the leaders should be fined or someone should be ordered to step in and do something. We only have 5 million or so people, not 40 million, like California. We should be able to function.
I am deeply saddened because Minnesota had a reputation of being a state that worked. That is now down the tube.
But more troubling is the fact that Joe Citizen evidently is not pounding on the doors of their senators and representatives and governor voicing their opinions to END this nightmare.
I personally called Zellars and Koch on their home phones on July 1 and they did not answer. It just rang and rang. I would call Dayton, but his office asks for letters or e-mails which I have done.
"So you are saying that : " allowing yourself to starve, or die in your own filth" is how everyone's life ended before 1935?"
Only to those who would deliberately misconstrue my comment in a desperate attempt to defend their ridiculous ideologies. As a matter of fact, before the New Deal, yes indeed, lots of people did die that way. Certainly not all, and probably not most, but too many for our national conscience to let us get away with. Before Social Security, old age and poverty were virtually synonymous for most Americans. The Hoover administration was no golden age, except for those who had all the gold.
If I wanted more ideology and dogma I would attend church on a more regular basis
Democrats can't get elected and Republicans can't govern. With the speaker of the Minnesota House committed to Grover Norquist's no new taxes pledge, along with significant numbers of Republican legislators, they are pursuing the "Starve the beast" philosophy that has appealed to the Tea Party types. Norquist also said he didn't want to kill the government, only reduce it to the size that would allow him to put it in the bathtub and drown it. This is the gossamer philosophy that justifies the abandonment of any idea of public interest that is not merely an expression of private interests. Since Corporations and the superrich are the most powerful private interests (see Koch Brothers) they have bought themselves immunity from a return to the relatively moderate graduated tax in the 1990s. When I drive the Interstate from Minneapolis to Duluth and see halted road construction and closed rest stops, it reminds me of Minnesota before Eisenhower brought both to the country. Republicans have indicated by their attacks on social security and Medicare that they would like to push us still further back, before FDR "socialized" America. Like Sarah Palin and our home state emulators of her political philosophy, they have no knowledge of or understanding of American history. Minnesota and Wisconsin were once progressive states, where the mean-spirited at least concealed their avarice and antisocial views beneath the veneer of "Minnesota Nice." That day is over, thanks to the Republican party and its "independent" fellow travelers. We have earned the worst opinion that others may have of our government, which has become the best state government money can buy.
JAL
//The people that are the maddest are the ones that are receiving the most. I don't depend on the state to survive.......I depend on myself to properly manage my expenses and not live on a week by week basis. So should the state.
Your posts are way out of line here. I only took a segment of what I found to be..umm...well, revolting.
Most of these people receiving what you consider all out 'hand-outs' would love to work in a position that affords them food, shelter and clothing. They want to work. Then there are those who can't for various reasons. Everyone has the right to food shelter and clothing AND dignity
http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/index.shtml
We are considered the wealthiest nation. why is it that we struggle to share with our own people let alone the rest of the planet?
How many homes does one individual need? How many cars-Lexus, Humvee and little red convertibles does one person need? It is this kind of life style that is ruining our planet.
This was posted under childcare the other day. A meaningful post.
//Capitalism requires the contribution of a large low-wage workforce. We spend tax dollars on services for the working poor not because we altruistically want to give them a hand, but ultimately because if we didn't they would be rioting in the streets demanding economic justice. Social Services benefiting the working poor is back door corporate welfare designed to prop up profits. Those who receive these benefits need to reframe their thinking and stop feeling ashamed. By being paid less than a living wage they are helping to make the companies they work for profitable and contributing to America's vast wealth - wealth that only dribbles down to them tangled in strings and reeking of misplaced contempt. In reality it is corporate America that should be ashamed.
Posted by Donna
And then Jim G had it Right here:
//Never filed for bankrupcy. But even if I had, it shouldn't disinfranchise anyone for expressing their first admendment rights. Or or those rights only for the rich and connected?
The wrong people have access to the resources in our state. The wrong people (not the elected officials- they are merely puppets of the corporate world) are making the decisions that affects many in a bad way.
This needs to change. Too much money-too much power-too much greed and not enough compassion.
I would say it ranks right up there with: " is that the state that elected the all-star wrestler? is it light there this time of year?"
Steve the Cynic,
So you are saying that : " allowing yourself to starve, or die in your own filth" is how everyone's life ended before 1935? I don't think so. Ever heard of a 401k, IRA etc, How about family ?
I am utterly disgusted, especially with those voters who felt it would be a good idea to vote for idealogues and others whose loyalties lie with special interest groups (i.e. Tax Payers League) rather than with the citizens of Minnesota as a whole. I have never worked for the government but still I am now mostly laid off as a result of the shut down. The Minnesota I grew up in was one I was always proud of and a step above most other States. I am now embarrased and ashamed of what we've become. Although I lean conservative, I blame the Republicans and their unwillingness to compromise for the shut down. The wealthy have been paying a lower percentage of their income in taxes for years and all the governor is asking for is that they pay their fair share. Republicans call the wealthy "job creators" but I know plenty of millionaires who inherited their wealth and don't create any jobs. I wish there was someway to recall the legislature and hold new elections ASAP.
JAL, if you ever come to a point in your life when your care can no longer be funded by your own resources, will you accept the help of others? By the logic of your comment at 8:32 this morning, one might conclude that you should do the honorable thing and allow yourself to starve, or die in your own filth, instead of letting the government pay for your nursing home care. I agree that radically equalizing wealth is a bad idea (as the USSR amply proved), but how would we fairly share the burden of doing those things that are everyone's responsibility in general but no one's in particular, if not by paying taxes to fund government services?
It is amazing how much common sense is lacking in this entire thing. I can't get a lottery ticket? If the lottery doesn't generate enough revenue to employ the regulators then why is it allowed at all? And if it does generate enough revenue then where's the common sense in shutting it down. This is merely a sampling of the lack of intelligence and foresight regarding this whole matter. I'm assamed of my state's lack of common sense. It is time to rewrite the rules regarding budget deficits.
@JAL
Never filed for bankrupcy. But even if I had, it shouldn't disinfranchise anyone for expressing their first admendment rights. Or or those rights only for the rich and connected? Read the Constitiution and the Bill of RIghts for the answer. The only people I know who have had to file for bankrupcy have had serious health issues that weren't covered by insurance. Will you ever face such a future? Hope not.
@JAL
Spot-on!
∑
DTOM
The shutdown itself hasn't really affected how I feel about the state.
However, the public's response to it certainly has. That so many continually frame our local problems using hollow phrases from federal concerns is disturbing and intelectually lazy. Especially here-- MPR has had several excellent features that go into detail about the issues which have caused and are now perpetuating the shutdown; there is no excuse for ignorance here.
We as a state aren't going to prosper if the focus of our citizens is constantly on problems that we aren't experiencing, fueled by out-of-state propoganda.
Additionally, it's not enough at this point to flatly demand that our government "just get it done", largely because the people that say that (in my experience) have strong opinions about what that would mean-- generally, the side that they don't agree with immediately and completely giving in. Their own side giving in they vociferously reject, making the "get it done" position disingenuous.
If you advocate for the specific policy of one group or another, then support it specifically. I like the Mondale/Carlson plan. Any solution is going to hurt, but there's no reason a single group should bear the full brunt of it. We all bear some responsibility for the state of our state, and we should all sacrifice at least somewhat in order to get out of it.
"Then you have legislator's that are still taking paychecks. How can that be ethical on any level when they put people’s livelihood at stake in giving the public workers their walking papers?"
What about the Democrats who can't be blamed for the shut-down?
I think the left should be thanking the Republicans for saving our state. Holding the line on spending isn't an easy job. It makes them seem like the bad guy when they take money away from the people that get it handed to them. The people that are the maddest are the ones that are receiving the most. I don't depend on the state to survive.......I depend on myself to properly manage my expenses and not live on a week by week basis. So should the state. We didn't get here by taxing too little, we got here by spending too much. Everyone likes to have lots of free money to throw around at whatever seems to make us a better state, but sooner or later we're going to have to meet reality and live on less than we can squeeze out of the people that do earn an honest living.
Anyone posting here ever file for bankruptcy? Perhaps you shouldn’t be the ones with a voice in telling the state how to manage it’s budget either.
Laying off state workers is only widening the budget gap with the lost spending in the private sectors and tax collections from the private and public sectors.
I believe if either side thinks this shutdown is effective is completely blind and incompetent. The only way the shutdown would be effective is if everything actually shutdown, everyone needs to feel the pain inflicted by the legislators decisions and lack of action, then maybe they can find compromise after heavy public pressure!
Then you have legislator's that are still taking paychecks. How can that be ethical on any level when they put people’s livelihood at stake in giving the public workers their walking papers? Last time I checked, elected officials are public employees. Why do they get to choose to be paid and the other 26,000 do not?
I am embarrassed and truly distressed. Yes, we have divided government but that shouldn't mean the leadrs cannot come to some sort of agreement. Our state is being damaged and this will make our budget even worse having to deal with the cost of the shutdown. I think if the leaders cannot come to compromise, they should resign for the good of the state. They didn't come with the idea of serving the state, they came to make a political statement. I am sick to death of t
he whole mess and please, say anything but MANDATE.
As long as people continue to allow these right-wing individuals to have a majority of elected seats, Minnesota's standing and reputation will continue to erode. Whenever they do capture the majority, things begin to slide - educations, the safety net for seniors, the disabled, the poor and downtrodden, and for workers trying to stay afloat. Minnesota has not had the top ratings in many areas for years now due to this bunch having control for much of that time and because the progressives have not had a backbone and mouth to stand up to them.
"The Democrats goal of getting more and more people dependant on the government...."
....is a stark example of of the kind of bovine feces that pass for political rhetoric these days. Accusing the other side of having sinister ulterior motives is a classic Machiavellian tactic. It serves to distract people from noticing your side's sinister ulterior motives.
As a native Minnesotan, graduate of the U of M, and our historically top rated public education system I am greatly saddened and disappointed by the shutdown. The current leadership is turning its back on funding the institutions that fueled Minnesota's rise as an economic engine in the Midwest since the 1950's. I blame the GOP intransigent leadership, elected and nonelected for this shutdown. They have failed this state's citizens, serving only the richest among us. Their lack of compromise and statecraft shows them unfit to lead our state into the future. In my opinion, we will be on a track to mediocrity if the GOP budget is adopted.
Minnesota used to be a great state, and it could be again.
I'm (mostly) proud of our governor. Four decades ago, the loony left was in firm control of Congress and was successfully selling its snake oil. Then the Republicans started talking sense and the pendulum began to swing. A modicum of deregulation and cuts to government programs was clearly necessary. During the Clinton administration, a good balance had been struck. But the pendulum didn't stop swinging, and now it's the ridiculous right that's deluding a gullible public.
If we keep cutting and deregulating, where does it end? Four decades ago, when the Soviet propaganda machine was telling its people that in the capitalist west there were hordes of homeless unemployed people and children were dying for lack of medical care, while the effete bourgeoisie sat on velvet and swilled French wine, we could look around and see that it wasn't true. How sad that we're increasingly coming to resemble that bleak caricature! It has to stop somewhere. I don't agree with everything Dayton wants, but at least he's taking a stand. Maybe Minnesota can begin to turn the tide. Or else we can keep cutting and deregulating until we replicate Somalia.
Minnesota is still a wonderful place to live. I do worry about the road we've been on for awhile now. We're still mostly progressive but unfortunately that's slipping away and we're seeing the consequences.
In the past, when the DFL had more control, our state
was always tops in every category. Sadly, now we're headed the way of Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida and all those other pathetic, red, low tax states.
I would guess that 99.9% of folks don't have the time nor the inclination to post on these blogs.
/Though now I am amazed at the churlishness being displayed by some of the chuffs posting here./
Well said Chuck!
I love Minnesota, our elected officials (Rep & Dem) need to:
grow a pair
Look at the check book balance
Look at the bills
Assume we are not getting a raise (increased taxes)
Do some simple math
Make some real honest and fair decisions.
∑
DTOM
You cannot legislate the poor into prosperity by legislating the wealth out of prosperity.
What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that is the beginning of the end of any state.
Minnesota will always be tops in my mind....
It's the current wave of politicians that concern me.
Government shutdowns are political theater that don't save money but rather cost money.
My only regret is that the 2012 elections will not arrive quickly enough.
@Chuck: Well said!
I used to vote Republican. Now sometimes I wonder why. Then I hear some of the retired pols on MPR and I realize that they were statesmen. I long for the time that the two parties worked for the good of the people not for the good of the party. Am I unrealistic? No, just hopeful that greed won't prevail.
@Bear - I understand that we need to control spending and that the GOP won the election to do that. That is only half of the story, though. Dayton also won. And his side of the story include raising taxes on the top earners in MN. There are two sides to this story, and both need to compromise, that's how a democracy works. If the GOP would have won the governor's race, then we would have a different situation, but they didn't and it seems to me that the GOP leadership is unwilling to accept that MN has a democratic governor who represents the people who voted for him.
My biggest concern for MN is that the political situation has shown how disrespectful people can be. Minnesotans do NOT need to be disrespectful if they disagree!
Minnesota is a wonderful place to live for lots of reasons . My opinion of that hasn't changed and I chose this place over anywhere in the US. Though now I am amazed at the churlishness being displayed by some of the chuffs posting here.
The budget issues do not affect my feelings towards my state. There is no finer place to live in this country.
However, I am embarrassed by our governor. He should stop giving interviews if he can’t control his whiny voice and quit with the lame metaphors. He sounds like a 10 year old that didn’t get his way on the playground.
Even more unsettling is that our state’s top executive has absolutely failed to accurately define and frame the problem. Governor Dayton continues his chorus that the richest 2 percent can afford to pay more taxes. Yes they can, but that is not the problem. The problem is unsustainable spending. So, say we increase taxes on the richest 2%, whose taxes do we increase next year? And the year after that? Yes the Republicans are being obstinate. But at some point someone has to dig in and demand the root problem be addressed – unsustainable spending – ahead of anything else. Fix the unsustainable spending problem, then discuss revenue increases. Raising taxes on the top 2% to solve the problem is putting a band aid on a severed artery and just kicks the can down the road.
And finally the Democrats painting Republicans as against education, healthcare, and the elderly because they are demanding a responsible budget plan is pure misinformation and shamefully disrespectful or their constituent’s intelligence. This is indicative that they are not serious about solving the root problem.
I don't feel the ineffectiveness of the leadership of our State Government should affect my opinion of my state. As you drive around the state you still see robust communities. The many parades and festivals reflecting community pride. Beautiful farmsteads, reflecting a strong agricultural economy, ready and available health care, and a strong educational system with many caring parents and local leaders. I refuse to let the media or the elected leaders damage my opinion of my state.
It makes me sick that the Republicans in this state have become so self-centered, greedy, close-minded, and hateful. It didn't always used to be this way. I feel like I am being forced to be a Democrat, I have always felt like they were too beholden to special interest groups in the metro area. But now- they seem to be the only ones who really care about the whole state. It's sad really.
The Republicans are finally not acting like Democrats for a change. But, the Democrats keep trying to bring us down the path of California. It's still never enough, it won't be enough again in two years.
Look at what's happening a the world, national, and state levels, government has become unsustainable. Government is sucking the life out of the private sector.
The Democrats goal of getting more and more people dependant on the government has now made the government unsustainable.
In the private sector, 6% more than last time and falling within the estimate revenue sounds real good to a family these days.
But for the insatiable beast called government, it's never enough. It never is.
I think Minnesota is a failing state.
I live in the center of progressive sanity, Minneapolis. I am pleased with my representation at both the state and federal level. In some ways, however, that can be frustrating because "writing my representative" is preaching to the choir, if you will bear the mixed metaphors.
I am going to need a new job come November. I was getting help through a workforce center. Now my career counselor is out of work. My need for a job is such that I am willing to relocate. If this drags on, I may have to.
No. We have a spending problem at both the state and federal level. Republicans are correct in trying to hold the line on spending. They were elected to stop the radical left from their continued assault on my income and I support their stand to control state spending.
No change. It has reaffirmed my opinion of Politicians. Democrats in particular.
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